Updated at 11:38 a.m. EDT, Mar. 12, 2008
At least 80 Iraqis were killed or found dead and another 123 were wounded in the latest reports. Also, a bombing in Mahmudiya left an unknown number of casualties. No Coalition deaths were reported. Twenty of the victims were found badly decomposed in a mass grave near Samarra.
A roadside bomb, possibly targeting a U.S. vehicle, killed 18 Iraqi civilians and wounded 13 more in Nasariya. The victims were traveling by bus from Najaf to Basra after attending a funeral.
A mass grave containing 20 bodies, belonging to men, women, and children was found near Samarra. The grave was old, but no estimate of its age was given.
Clashes between possible Mahdi Army supporters and combined Iraqi-U.S. forces in Kut left 14 Iraqis dead and 47 wounded. Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr extended a unilateral cease-fire treaty recently, but also said that members of his Mahdi Army could protect themselves from attacks. It is possible that these members were from a splinter group or even unrelated to the Mahdi Army.
U.S. forces killed five suspects during a U.S. air raid south of Tikrit near al-Dawr; however, police said that three of the victims were civilians.
In Baghdad, five dumped bodies were found. A bomb exploded at a neighborhood council meeting, killing one member and wounding eight others. A roadside bomb in Mansour injured an Iraqi soldier. In Tobchi, gunmen attacked a juvenile prison where they injured three policemen and three prisoners, but were able to free five detainees. Also, no casualties were reported during a bombing near the airport.
Gunmen attacked a Mithaq area checkpoint in Mosul. Four of them were killed along with four policemen and a civilian; at least one other civilian was injured. A university professor escaped an assassination attempt unharmed; this is the third attack on him. Also, U.S. forces killed a gunman and injured a second one, who were planting a roadside bomb.
Five people were killed and 30 more were injured during a car bombing at an Awakening Council Sahwa checkpoint in Duluiya.
A suicide car bomber killed two Sahwa members and injured three more during an attack on a checkpoint in a northern section of Fallujah.
A roadside bomb near a Karbala hospital injured four policemen and a child.
In Kirkuk, three Sahwa members were injured during a roadside bombing. A separate roadside bomb explosion injured two policemen on patrol. A policeman was injured during an IED explosion downtown. A policeman was injured last night during an IED explosion on a highway heading towards Riyadh. Also, west of the city, a Sahwa member was injured in a roadside bomb blast.
A car bomb in Mahmudiya left an unknown number of casualties.
In Diwaniya, 57 convicted prisoners were released under a general amnesty program.
Eight wanted suspects were captured in Arbil. U.S. forces arrested another suspect in Mahaweel.
Compiled by Margaret Griffis
